DPSAC News
A bi-weekly newsletter from the Division of Personnel Security and Access Control
Providing timely information to help keep NIH safe and secure.

January 16, 2019 Issue of DPSAC News
 In this issue:
  • 2019 Summer Intern Program Changes
  • News Brief: Security Backlog Dips as Pentagon Gears Up to Take Over Processing
  • New Frozen Credit Instructions for Personnel Background Investigations
  • Helpful Tips
2019 Summer Internship Program Changes
DPSAC News is reprinting a recent e-mail to NIH staff from Dr. Sharon L. Milgram, Director, Office of Intramural Training & Education NIH, Office of the Director that details important changes to the NIH Summer Internship Program for summer 2019. DPSAC issues over a thousand badges to summer interns each spring,
 
Dear NIH Colleague,

At the request of NIH leadership, and with the approval of the Scientific Directors, the NIH Office of Intramural Training & Education (OITE) has made some significant changes to the NIH Summer Internship Program (SIP) for summer 2019. I know that many of you talk with neighbors, friends, and others interested in SIP, so I want to take a moment to explain the most important changes. They affect program eligibility, the intern selection process, and the nature of the program itself for participating high school students. Changes affecting our older interns are minimal.

Beginning in 2019, summer interns must be seventeen by June 15th of the internship year. Individuals who are in high school must meet two additional criteria: they must be either juniors or seniors, and, if they will not be 18 by June 15th of the internship year, they must, at the time of application, reside within 40 miles of the NIH campus on which they hope to intern.

High school summer interns will be selected by an IC selection committee, rather than by individual principal investigators (PIs). Each IC will appoint a High School Summer Coordinator and devise a process for making summer intern selections. With limited exceptions, summer interns will not be appointed to ICs in which a parent or guardian works.

News Briefs
Security Clearance Backlog Dips as Pentagon Gears Up to Take Over Processing
Excerpted from the December 13, 2018 “Gov Exec” article by Aaron Boyd 
The Defense Department (DoD) and Office of Personnel Management (OPM) expect to have merged two offices and moved 2,000 federal employees and a 600,000-case backlog of security clearance investigations nine months from now.
 
The new office will be established under the Defense Security Service (DSS) by
October 1, 2019 Director for Defense Intelligence Garry Reid told the House Armed Services Committee during a December 12 hearing on the security clearance backlog. The office will absorb the National Background Investigations Bureau (NBIB), established in the wake of the 2015 OPM network breach.

OPM/NBIB Announces New Frozen Credit Instructions for Personnel Background Investigations
This article first appeared in the December 19, 2018 DPSAC News

As of September 24, 2018, agencies requesting investigations from the National Background Investigations Bureau (NBIB) do not need to instruct subjects of investigations to unfreeze their credit.
 
On May 24, 2018, the Economic Grown, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act was signed into law and included an amendment to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The amendment, which went into effect September 22, 2018, allows access to credit bureaus to frozen credit reports for “any person using the information for employment, tenant, or background screening purposes.”

This change provides NBIB the ability to conduct a check on frozen credit accounts without requiring the Subject of the investigation to unfreeze the account(s).
Do NOT lend your ID badge to anyone! Lending your ID badge is prohibited. The issuance of ID badges is based on strict identity proofing and the determination of one's suitability for a specific position classification. To do so is a criminal offense!

Return Your Badge When Leaving NIH
If you plan to leave the employ of NIH, whether you’re an employee, contractor or affiliate, you will need to turn in your HHS ID Badge (or RLA Badge) to your Administrative Officer so that s/he can deactivate your badge in NED. The AO will turn over the deactivated badge to the badging office.

 Administrative Officers (AOs) who wish to obtain sponsor authority must complete the sponsor training. To access the training module, click on: Sponsor .

Upon completion, the AO should sign and e-mail a copy of the certificate found at the end of the training module to Alex Salah at: salaha@ors.od.nih.gov . Upon receipt of the certificate, Mr. Salah will authorize the AO as a Sponsor. 

Note: ONLY individuals with an Administrative Officer role in NED are eligible to be HHS ID Badge/PIV Card Sponsors.  
A biweekly e-newsletter from the National Institutes of Health, Office of Research Services, Division of Personnel Security and Access Control (ORS/DPSAC) to keep its readers informed of personnel security and access control policies and practices designed to safeguard the NIH and its workforce. DPSAC is responsible for verifying personal identity, validating suitability, reviewing background checks, authorizing facility access and issuing ID badges for NIH personnel. 

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